Needed new pipeline for natural gas

Just as Florida has two main railroad lines that bring freight into the state, we similarly have two natural gas pipelines that bring in fuel from other Gulf Coast states.

The pipeline that crosses the waters of the Gulf of Mexico is said to be at 100 percent capacity. The other, which runs above ground from Texas into Central Florida, is expected to reach 94 percent capacity by 2017.

Since natural gas generates about 68 percent of the state's electricity, particularly in South and Central Florida, we would face serious trouble if a major storm or breakdown were to create back-ups or disruptions. Floridians learned the importance of natural gas for meeting our electricity needs when Hurricane Katrina crossed the Gulf in 2005 and shut down natural gas production for days.

So it's good news that state regulators recently gave a thumbs-up to a plan by Florida Power & Light to create a third natural gas pipeline that would run down the center of the state from its start in southwestern Alabama.

Now all eyes are on federal regulators, whose approval is needed to clear the way for the $3.5 billion, 591-mile-long project that is essential to helping the state keep up with demand for cleaner electricity.

Expect speed bumps ahead. While state regulators recently approved the project, federal regulators represent the next biggest hurdle. Since the pipeline will cross three states, environmental impact issues must be addressed, similar to those being raised with the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to Texas. In that project, the Department of Interior is concerned about the effects on national parks, birds and fish.

Gas pipelines don't come without problems. This month, federal regulators fined Exxon Mobil $2.6 million for spilling 210,000 gallons of oil from a pipeline into an Arkansas subdivision. And two weeks ago, a liquid petroleum gas pipeline south of Dallas caught fire and exploded, forcing evacuations from the small town of Milford. Safety lapses are blamed.

Some argue that as an alternative to foreign oil, Florida should instead look to solar power for its electricity needs. But the truth is, while solar energy is making important strides, it can't replace the current output of oil and natural gas. Others argue a new Florida natural gas pipeline will further encourage fracking in states that derive natural gas from shale. But fracking will occur with or without Florida's new pipeline. And to reduce our nation's reliance on foreign oil, we must — with great care — better harvest our own energy resources.

The third pipeline would help fuel two power plants under construction in Riviera Beach and at Port Everglades, as well as plants statewide. It also would reduce the odds of disruptions if one of the other pipelines were to run into problems.

The added pipeline creates other benefits, too. It would boost the state's gas capacity by about 20 percent, and create about 8,000 construction jobs. And it would connect the other two pipelines — which currently do not intersect — allowing flexibility in moving gas supplies around where needed.

FPL is not building the pipeline, private investors are, but the public company is leading the charge. In 2009, the PSC turned down a proposal that would have let FPL build a 280-mile pipeline itself.

This time around, the utility company has positioned itself as the pipeline's largest customer. The PSC granted FPL the right to sign long-term contracts to transport natural gas through the pipeline that would begin in Alabama, wind through Georgia, and pass through 13 counties in Florida before ending in Martin County.

It is worth noting that in the past decade, FPL has slashed the use of oil for electrical production by 98 percent — from more than 40 million barrels per year in 2001, to less than one million barrels last year.

For this third natural gas pipeline to go from pipe dream to reality, it needs clearance from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the last big hurdle.

Given Florida's decreasing addiction to foreign oil, our increasing reliance on cleaner-burning alternatives and the genuine demand for more natural gas, this project deserves a green light.